Charter Business Networks

Charter Communications® Increases Reliability of Service with Technical Milestone
Completion of $25 million Fiber Optic SONET Ring Enables Cutomers to Have Service During a Fiber Cut

Madison, Wisconsin – September 7, 2001 – Charter Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: CHTR), is pleased to announce the completion of a $25 million statewide Fiber Optic SONET Ring in Wisconsin. After years of work, Charter has connected 850 miles of fiber-optic cable to form a ring joining the cities of Madison, Wausau, La Crosse, Eau Claire and Fond du Lac plus dozens of communities in between.

"Before, a cut to our fiber-optic cable meant an outage to all customers along its path,’’ said Marshall Frey, Director of Operations for Charter Business Networks. "Now, if we get that same fiber cut anywhere on the Ring, data flows to its destination in the opposite direction. This means, our customer will not see a disruption of service and may not even be aware of the cut.’’

The Ring is part of Charter Communications’ nationwide, $3.5 billion effort to update, improve and interconnect its data networks. Completion of the SONET Ring is a major milestone in the development of Charter’s advanced data communications network in Wisconsin and the first in the company.

"The completion of this Fiber Optic Ring is an important step to provide our customers with world class service,’’ said Mark Wellnitz, General Manager of Charter Business Networks. "Furthermore, it gives both Charter and our customers the foundation for future products like telephone over cable, Internet through your TV and much more in the years to come.’’

Charter Communications, a Wired World™ company, is among the nation’s largest broadband communications companies, currently serving some 7 million customers in 40 states. Charter provides a full range of advanced broadband services to the home, including cable television on an advanced digital video programming platform marketed under the Charter Digital Cable™ brand and high-speed Internet access via Charter Pipeline™. Commercial high-speed data, video and Internet solutions are provided under the Charter Business Networks™ brand. Advertising sales and production services are sold under the Charter Media™ brand.

A Fortune 500 company, Charter is the 2001 recipient of the Outstanding Corporate Growth Award from the Association for Corporate Growth, the 2001 R.E. "Ted’’ Turner Innovator of the Year Award from the Southern Cable Telecommunications Association, and the 2000 Innovator Award for Technology from Cablevision Magazine.

More information about Charter can be found at www.charter.com.

For more information contact Jim Homuth, (608)238-9690 ext. 293